Forever Young
by FrolickingButterfly
Summary: At Juliet's 21st birthday, Artemis reflects on his childhood, lack of friends and what he wants to do with his life...


**Hello everyone who is reading this. Okay, this is a kind of song fic thing, right? I wrote it so it could be read to a certain piece of music – this piece being the song 'Forever Young' by Youth Group. If you can be bothered, open up a new window in your browser, go to a music downloading site (may I suggest limewire?) and download this song. Otherwise, you could just read it. I haven't put all the lyrics to the song in this, just random bits I think are relevant. If you read while listening to the song, please review and tell me if the song fits okay with the story – this is my first story, I need help! Or just review and tell me any mistakes I made so I can fix them … I know this is far from perfect, and I welcome any feedback to help me make it better : )**

"_Let's dance in style  
Let's dance for a while  
Heaven can wait we're only watching the sky …"_

It was a beautiful summer's night, a slight breeze ruffling the branches of the trees lining Fowl Manor's courtyard. The fairy lights in the trees were twinkling happily, in stark contrast to the dark night's sky. Underneath the bright, glowing moon, happy conversations were being played out as the guests sat themselves in front of a wall of Fowl Manor, off which a slide show was being projected.

_Click_

A picture of a newborn girl, surrounded by her parents and brother, was thrown against the wall.

_Click_

The small girl was about four, in a sandbox with her much older brother. He was demonstrating a spinning kick.

"We all know how that turned out!" Juliet Butler giggled, playfully punching her brother in the shoulder.

Butler threw her a Look, but gave her a quick hug.

_Click_

Onscreen, Butler lay in the sandbox, the photo freezing a look of intense pain on his face. The young Juliet was giggling and throwing sand, having just kicked her brother in a sensitive place.

Artemis sat by the pond, watching the slide show by himself. He had made the slide show for Juliet, arranging a selection of the many photo's of her childhood on PowerPoint. The strains of the music he'd accompanied the slide show with filled the warm night's air. "_Forever young, I want to be, forever young …_"

Juliet's 21st birthday had been a huge success, with all her friends, their boyfriends and her current boyfriend turning up to the manor for the party. They had dined _al fresco, _danced for a while, before coming out here to watch the slide show as a conclusion of the night.

_Click_

A five year old Juliet stood with Mrs Fowl, who was holding a newborn baby. Artemis Fowl the Second. Juliet was smiling, a playful spark in her eyes. Butler stood at the back of the photo, watching his young charge. The newborn managed to look serious, despite the gaudy, primary-coloured dummy hanging out of his mouth.

"_Some like water and some are like the heat,  
Some are melodies, some are the beat …"_

_Click_

Artemis, Mrs Fowl and Mr Fowl were standing around a table, on which a framed certificate was placed. The serious mood of the photo was slightly ruined by a twelve year old Juliet, wearing sparkling green makeup, grinning like a loon in the background.

Juliet, sitting amongst all her friends, looked around for Artemis. Spotting him in the shadows, she smiled.

"Soon you'll be turning 21, Arty! We'll have to do a slide show for you!"

"In five years," Artemis replied.

_Click_

Juliet and one of her many boyfriends sitting on a car bonnet. They were sharing an ice-cream cone and laughing.

_Click_

Juliet and a group of her friends, pulling mock-serious faces

_Click_

The same group, all cracking up with laughter.

Juliet and the same group of friends, all in their early twenties now, collapsed on the manicured grass of Fowl Manor; laughing in the way you do when you're remembering all the in-jokes you had when you were young, and still finding them funny in a dumb way.

"_Forever young, I want to be, forever young …_"

Artemis felt a pang in his stomach. He had never really thought that he'd missed out on anything by not socializing with people his own age. It wasn't that he was antisocial; he just didn't think there was anything to be gained by regularly meeting up with teenagers. But now, confronted with these images of sheer joy at being part of a group of people with which you could share your hopes, fears, life's experiences…

_Click_

Juliet and Artemis. Juliet was making a peace sign behind Artemis's head, grinning. The boy stared stiffly ahead. As always.

Artemis sipped water from a champagne flute. What photos would be shown when he turned twenty one?

He had no photos of him mucking around with people his own age.

No snapshot's he could look at, nudge his friend, and crack up laughing at, the way Juliet was doing now.

None to remind him of little in-jokes he'd once shared, so dumb they were funny.

He had none of these because he'd never had the experiences of friendship. Not friendship like Juliet and her friends.

"_Forever young, I want to be, forever young …_"

_Click_

Juliet and three girls, seated around a table, putting on the faces that the girls who think they're too cool to smile wear.

"Remember that skirt I was wearing?" Juliet asked, nudging her friends and laughing, "I was always wearing that! I thought it was so cool! But it's so … Ninety's!"

"It was the Ninety's," one of her friends mentioned, which made them all giggle.

"What was up with my HAIR?" Another asked. "It's so…"

"Ninety's?"

They collapsed against each other, laughing, the perfect picture of friendship so tight it had survived since pre-adolescence.

Artemis bit into a wafer topped with caviar, finding he was, once again envious of Juliet.

He wondered exactly who he would invite to his twenty-first birthday.

Mother, Father, Juliet, Butler … who else?

_Click_

Juliet as a teenager, wearing a slightly sulky expression on her glitter-endowed face. This was around the time Mr Fowl had been missing.

_Click_

Juliet ready to go to Madam Ko's academy.

"I like your suit," her friend remarked.

"Oh, shut up!" Juliet giggled, and gently shoved her friend.

"Hey," the friend shoved back, laughing. Their playful shoves continued, before another friend intervened. They leaned against each other and the rest of the group, laughing with the sheer joy of being young, of being surrounded by those you love, and having them love you back.

Artemis felt left out, sitting on his chair under the fairy lights intertwined with the branches of the tree that cast a shadow over the koi pond. By candlelight, and the light the fairy lights provided, he could see a mass of joyful grins, linked arms and fashionable outfits that was Juliet and her friends, the circle of the boyfriends of the girls, and Mr and Mrs Fowl, linked arm in arm, looking like a teenaged couple as they kissed each other in the moonlight. Even Butler was part of something, grinning proudly at the young woman Juliet had become.

Artemis felt old and alone.

The final strains of the music drifted through the warm night air, swooping with the breeze as the flames of the candles danced joyfully.

"_Do you really want to live forever…?"_

**Just in case you didn't get that, it's set at Juliet's 21st birthday. I think this would make Artemis 16? Please review and tell me what you think! And I'd really appreciate any corrections, criticisms, whatever, so I can improve! Thanks!**


End file.
